Corner unit and its manufacture



Oct. 14, 1947.

H. K. PIPER I 2,429,192

CORNER UNI TS AND THEIR MANUFACTURE Filed May 26, 1945 @if w M Patented Oct. 14, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CORNER UNIT AND ITS MANUFACTURE Harry K. Piper, Paris, 11]., assignor to Eugene E.

Malice and Lady Eleanor Malic doing business as Corner-Brie Company, Chicago, 1111.

Application May 26, 1945, Serial No. 596,003

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to pre-fabricated corner units for building siding, and among other objects aims to provide an improved unit by improved and simplified methods.

The nature of the invention may be readily understood by reference to one illustrative product and its method of manufacture, described in the following specification and illustrated in the acompanying drawing.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammaticperspective view illustrating certain steps in the method of making a corner unit;

Fig. 2 is another perspective view illustrating the unit in a later stage of manufacture;

Fig. 3 is a similar perspective view illustratin the completed corner unit;

Fig. 4 illustrates a step in the manufacture after complete assembly of the corner unit;

Fig. 5 is a view showing certain apparatus used in the manufacture of the corner unit; and

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 illustrating the function performed by the apparatus.

Corner units of the present character are'designed for use with exterior covering (referred to'as siding) for the sides of buildings. A typical siding comprises a fibrous asphalt coatedsheet surfaced with granular material partly imbedded in the asphalt coating and generally arranged in some pattern, e. g., to simulate brick. The mortar joints between the bricks are simulated by black stripes formed for example by applying or exposing the black coating asp-halt. This may be done in various ways, one of which is to embed the granular surfacing along the simulated mortar lines so deeply in the asphalt coating as to expose the asphalt on such lines, thereby forming stripes or lines which contrast with the lighter colored areas of granular surfacing material which simulates the brick.

Building sides are too irregular to permit the siding to be carried continuously around a corner, even if that were otherwise possible. It is therefore the practice to interrupt the siding at the corner and cover the latter as well as the adjacent margins of the siding itself with a, corner unit. Siding of this character is relatively cheap, thereby making it important to fabricate the corner units correspondingly cheaply,

The illustrative corner unit It comprises an outer ply II which may advantageously be of the same or similar material from which the siding itself is made. In this case it comprises an asphalt impregnated fibre or felt sheet having on its outer face a substantial layer of so-called coating asphalt in which is imbedded granular surfacing material preferably applied so as to present a pattern such as brick. The brick simulating areas are separated by black lines or stripes representing the mortar joints. Generally the inner surface of the felt sheet also has a very thin sealing coat of the coating asphalt. stiffen the outer ply one or more (in this case two) inner or liner plies I3 are fastened to the inner face of the outer ply. The corner unit is bent longitudinally (in this case for an exterior corner angle) and the linerplies serve to hold the unit in; the desired bent condition.

In assembly of the corner unit the inner or liner plies l3 terminate at M a, short distance from the end of the outer ply. At the other end of the unit the plies 13 project a. corresponding distance beyond the end [5 of the outer ply. This arrangement provides a ship-lap construction for joining the ends of succeeding units.

Preferably the inner plies 13 are somewhat narrower than the width of the outer ply H thereby leaving the side margins l6 of the outer ply projecting beyond the liner. These proiecting margins may be bent somewhat toward the siding on application of the corner unit thereby effectively concealing the off-set in the surface at the corner unit.

In Figs. 1 to 6 is illustrated diagrammatically an improved method by which the aforesaid corner units may be made efiiciently and cheaply.

In the illustrative method the several elements or plies of the corner unit are assembled fiat while in heated condition with a thermo-plastic cementing agent between the plies. While the cementing agent is still in plastic condition the several plies are bent while assembled to the desired. angle, and then this angular relationship is positively maintained while the unit is cooling and until the thermo-plastic cementing agent has set. When thus set the corner unit is fairly rigid and the angle is permanently maintained. Since the angle is maintained solely by the action of the cementing agent, it can be adjusted to inequalities of the wall surface upon application of the corner uni-t simply by gently heating the inner face of the corner unit with a blow torch or the like until the cementing agent has softened sufficiently to permit adjustment of the angle. Thereafter cooling and setting of the cementing agent maintains the angle in its adjusted condition. The several plies making up the corner unit having been bent while assembled in heated condition do not resist adjustment of the angle as. aforesaid. When heated they assume whatever angle is desired, and maintain such angle when the thermo-plastic cementing agent has again set.

In the present case I use as a cementing agent, a 220 F. melt point-hard or coating asphalt. having a penetration (100 gram) of 17 to 21 in seconds at 77 F. As here shown the facing or outer ply H is first heated to soften the thin coating of 220 F. melt point asphalt on its inner face, i. e., the face opposite the granular surface. This is effected in this instance by means of a heated plate I! on which the outer ply rests just before assembly. Thereupon the outer ply is shifted to assembly position and inverted as at 38 (Fig. 1) during such shifting from the plate 1! to assembly position 20 so that the heated inner surface 2| will lie uppermost. Thereupon the inner plies l3 are successively fed to assem bly position and in their travel toward assembly position the undersurface of each ply is given a coating of heated 220 F. melt point asphalt of the character above described. This coating is applied in this instance by causing the plies to travel over a coating roll 23 which revolves in a heated tank or vat 24 which holds the aforesaid asphalt at a temperature of about 460 F.

The inner plies (3 after coating as aforesaid are successively located in assembly position in relation to the outer ply H by means of adjus able stops 25 and 26. Stop 25 adjusts the offset M at the end of the unit; and stop 25 adjusts the margin [6 at one side of the unit. In the present case the upper element 21 of these stops is spaced by means of a lower element 28 above the assembly surface by the distance of the thickness of the outer ply ll. Thus in assembly the outer ply is first laid on the assembly surface 20 with its margins engaging the lower elements 28 of the end and side stops. By adjusting the upper element 2'! in relation to the lower element 28 of the stop, the width of the side and end margins may be varied. The stops 26 are adjusted to provide side margins of equal width in the completed unit. In bending, as presently described, the inner plies beyond the bend slip relatively to the outer ply. This must be taken into account in the initial assembly by adjusting stops 26 to position the inner plies oil-center relative to the outer ply.

As illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 the assembly surface 20 comprises a pair of hinged plates 29 and 30. In this case plate 29 is stationary and plate 38 is hinged thereto by hinge 3! extending longitudinally of the unit. During the assembly both plates lie flat (see Fig. 5) so as to provide a flush assembly surface 20, being held in this flat relatiOIlShip by angular members 32 and 33 projec ing at right angles to the plates themselves and to which the hinge elements are respectively connected.

After assembly the movable plate 33 is adapted to be swung upwardly to the position shown in Fig. 6 so as to bend the assembled lies longitudinally down the middle as illustrated in Fig. 6. A clamping plate 34, hinged at 35 to plate 29 beyond the edges of the assembled unit, serves to hold down or clamp the-several plies of the unit during the bending operation. Preferably plate 34 is provided with an angularly extending projection 36 to provide an edge 31 around which the corner unit is bent and a supporting surface against which the several plies are pressed after the bending action. It should be understood that the relative slipping of the lies on each other during the bending operation occurs beyond the corner 31', the portion of the unit remaining horizontal being held against relative slipping by the clamping plate 34.. The width of plate 34 is made variable, as by the clamping screw 38, to permit adjustment of the location of the corner 31 relative to the unit for regulating the location of the bend in the unit.

It will be evident that the inner plies l3 slip relatively to each other and to the outer ply sufficiently during the bending operation so that the side margins 16 are equal in the completed corner unit. Both the plates 30 and 34 are advantageously provided with handles 39 and 40, respectively, by which the bending operation is facilitated. If desired a latch M may be employed to hold plate 34 down tightly against the plies as illustrated in Fig. 6 during the bending operation.

When plate 34 is pressed down to clamp the plies (Fig. 6) latch il falls over pin 42 to hold the plate in its clamping position. The operator is then free to operate plate 30 to bend the unit.

Preferably the corner unit is bent to a slightly acute angle (in this case about as shown in Fig. 6 because of the tendency of the corner unit to unbend (because of some resilience in the material) while the unit is being transferred to the next operation.

After pressing the plies together momentarily as illustrated in Fig. 6, the plates 30 and 34 are opened to their initial fiat relationship and the bent corner unit is thereupon immediately transferred to forms which hold the assembly together at the proper or desired angle until the thermoplastic cementing agent has fully set. In the present instance the forms comprise angular metal members 43 bent to form angles M corresponding to the desired angle of the corner unit. The bent corner unit is laid in an angle M and the metal serves to conduct away the heat and cool the thermo-plastic setting agent quickly. The angle 53 may advantageously comprise a plate bent in the form of a multiple Z-bar so as to hold a series of corner units. When one plate 43 has been filled, another is placed upon it to receive other corner units and thus a stack of alternate plates 43 and corner units is built up.

The weight of the superposed plates and corner units cooperates to compress the several plies tightly together during the setting of the thermo-plastic cementing agent. Upon cooling the units are satisfactorily rigid and the angular relationship is maintained without further treatment.

Delivery of the surface heated outer ply H and the surface coated liner ply 13 in closejuXt'aposition to the assembly point is important. Assembly must be efiected before the asphalt cools, and since the coating of fluid asphalt is relatively thin it tends to cool quickly, In the illustrative mehod, a minimum of time is required in transfer of the ply l3 from'the point of application of the cement asphalt by the roll 23 to the assembly point. Therefore, the asphalt coating cannot unduly cool. It is also important that the coating be initially applied uniformly and of proper thickness so as not to require subsequent dressing or gauging since that would unduly cool the coating. This difiiculty is not solved by increasing the temperature of th coating asphalt because it is too thin to hold a substantial amount of heat and at very high temperature substantially above 450 degrees F., it would be excessively thin and its characteristics would be greatly altered. Moreover, rapid cooling is desirable to minimize the delay in setting of the asphalt after assembly.

' The material of the plies being substantially of lower temperature than the asphalt quickly cools the asphalt below about 200 degrees F. at which temperature it may be considered to have set.

It is apparent, therefore, that in the illustrative method rapid assembly after coating makes it possible to obtain high production.

Obviously the invention is not limited to the details of the illustrative corner unit or its method of manufacture since thes may be variously modified. Moreover it is not indispensable that all features of the invention be used conjointly since various features may be used to advantage in the diiferent combinations and subcombinations.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. The method of making corner units which comprises advancing a surface heated elongated flexible outer ply to an assembly point, simultaneously advancing a flexible inner ply of generally the same shape as said outer ply toward said assembly point and applying on its underface a. heated thermo-plastic cementing agent, then before said cementing agent has cooled placing the inner ply on the outer ply with the cementing agent between the plies, pressing the plies together and binding said plies along their longitudinal median axes to an angle while allowing slippage between those areas of the plies on one side only of the vertex of the angle during said bending, and then supporting the units in their bent condition on heat conducting surfaces until the cementing agent cools and sets.

2. The method of making corner units which comprises advancing a flexible elongated asphalt 35 saturated outer ly having a pattern on its outer face and heating the inner face of said ply to soften the asphalt, simultaneously advancing a flexible inner ply of generally the same shape as said outer ply toward a point of assembly with said outer ply and applying on its under face a coating asphalt heated to about 400 F., then before said coating has cooled placing said inner ply on the outer ply with the coating between them, then bending said outer ply along substantially its longitudinal median ,line and while bending holding the inner and outer plies pressed together along one side of said median line but allowing the plies to slip relatively during the bending on the other side of said median line, and then holding said plies pressed together and bent at said angle until said asphalt has cooled and set.

HARRY K. PIPER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,246,660 Bawtenheimer June 24, 1941 2,360,052 Fuller Oct. 10, 1944 2,101,589 MacLean Dec. 7, 1937 1,295,361 Overbury Feb. 25, 1919 OTHER REFERENCES Asphalts and Allied Substances, H. Abraham, 4th edition (1938), pp. 654, 653, 681, 

